Hackers find new Apple iPhone bug

A journalist takes a photo of Apple's new plastic iPhone during a media event held in Beijing, China, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

The latest vulnerability discovered in iOS7 lets you make calls from the lock screen and follows the earlier discovery of a flaw that could give hackers access to a device's emails, text messages, Twitter and Facebook feeds.

Initially reported by Forbes, the new bug in iOS7 Apple's latest mobile operating system -- which comes as standard on its new iPhones and is currently being downloaded and installed by existing iPhone 4, 4S and iPhone 5 owners -- means that rather than just enabling emergency calls when a phone is locked, by continually tapping on the onscreen call button, any phone number could be called instead. It means that a less-than-trustworthy individual could use an iPhone to call premium chat lines or overseas numbers rather than simply the emergency services.

It is the second vulnerability to be discovered in the company's much-hyped operating system since it was made available for public download on September 18. The first -- which enables a hacker to gain access to a device's photo album, text messages, email, Twitter, Flickr and Facebook accounts via the Control Center window (which can now be viewed and accessed from the lockscreen) -- was discovered on September 19 and a how-to video posted to YouTube.

Apple has said that it is working on a fix for this problem and luckily there is a short-term solution for iPhone owners worried about falling prey to this flaw. In the Settings Menu, deactivate the Control Center window so that it can only be accessed when the phone is unlocked.

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However, there is no short-term patch for this new exploit other than ensuring that a phone is never left unattended.

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